Feb 17, 2022
Chinese Artisans Team Up Under the Aegis of Celadon
Having commissioned a series of double-crown, cloisonné world time wristwatches from Andersen Genève, Singaporean collector Benjamin Chee now turns to Chinese artisans for his latest collaborative project. The Celadon Haute Horlogerie Century is the work of AHCI member Lin Yong Hua and Xiong Songtao, a third-generation enameller who created the cloisonné dial. Initial thoughts The watchmakers are proficient at making – and marketing – métiers d’art, but Chinese watchmakers are fairly new entrants to the high-end of this field, making the Century an unusual offering. The Century is an entirely different animal from the low-end watches that are often associated with the made-in-China label. Both in terms of the dial and movement, the Century takes things to another level, while possessing a refined, clean style. The entire dial is cloisonné enamel comprised of an impressive amount of gold wire to form the intricate motif. In fact, the fine cloisonné work resembles brush strokes from afar. It’s certainly appears to be top class work in both complexity and quality. And the movement is comparable in quality, which is unsurprising since it was developed by Mr Lin, who is best known for his quirky, hand-made wristwatches. The finishing is excellent, as evidenced by the rounded bevelling on the three-quarter plate. But while the Century does well in intrinsic quality, it seems to lack identity. While the watch is well designed and finely made – especially con...
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